Patient Complaints on Rise in Ontario, Ombudsman Reports

A sign directing visitors to the emergency department is shown at a hospital in Ottawa, on May 15, 2015. The Canadian Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press

The Ontario patient ombudsman office looked into a record number of complaints involving health-care facilities last year, including one case that resulted in the death of an elderly patient.

There were 4,886 new complaints lodged last year, reflecting a 16 percent rise in written complaints and an 8 percent increase in call centre complaints compared to the previous year, says the annual report released on Nov. 13. A total of 4,863 complaints were resolved, and 264 were carried over from the previous year.